Inflammatory skin diseases (ISDs) – including atopic dermatitis, eczema, psoriasis, urticaria, alopecia areata, hidradenitis suppurativa, vitiligo, bullous disorders and cutaneous lupus – are increasingly recognised as systemic immune conditions with effects beyond the skin. Many people with ISDs show altered inflammatory and metabolic profiles, higher rates of cardiometabolic and mental health conditions, and possible differences in cancer risk and ageing. However, findings are inconsistent and have rarely been evaluated using large-scale, multi-level data. UK Biobank provides a unique opportunity to address these gaps by combining health records, multi-omics data and imaging-derived measures within a single cohort.
Research questions:
1. How do ISDs relate to systemic inflammatory, metabolic and haematological markers, including proteomic and metabolomic profiles?
2. Do individuals with ISDs show accelerated biological or organ-specific ageing based on proteomic, metabolomic, methylation and telomere-based measures, together with imaging-derived phenotypes?
3. Are ISDs associated with differences in long-term cancer incidence, and how do inflammatory or metabolic profiles relate to this susceptibility?
4. What broader patterns of comorbidity and multi-organ involvement accompany ISDs?
Objectives:
1. To define ISD phenotypes using multiple data sources and describe associated inflammatory and metabolic signatures.
2. To evaluate biological ageing in ISDs using molecular and imaging-based measures.
3. To assess long-term cancer incidence in people with ISDs and its relationship with systemic profiles.
4. To provide an integrated description of the systemic burden of ISDs.
